Thursday, March 2, 2023

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AI in academia: UW-Madison professors weigh in on student usage of ChatGPT

By Liam Beran STAFF WRITER

Throughout various professional and educational fields, experts and professors at the University of WisconsinMadison grapple with the ramifications of ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence bots’ usage in academic settings.

The chatbot is advanced enough to create responses that many students could use to complete assignments, and at the university level, reactions are varied.

The Zumbrummen, Vice Provost of Learning and Teaching at UW-Madison, said the university does not plan to write new academic policy for ChatGPT, which is covered by existing academic integrity policy, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Dr. Yonatan Mintz, an assistant professor in industrial and systems engineering at UW-Madison, explained how ChatGPT functions crawled “English language corpus” from the entire internet until 2019 and used those webpages to figure out ways of reproducing patterns in English speech.

The chatbot isn’t actually looking at English words, according to Mintz. Instead, the transformer uses an encoding layer which converts an English word into a vector — that embedding process is the way ChatGPT understands language, said Mintz.

“When we say machine learning, artificial intelligence — it’s all kinda nice euphemisms to explain complicated mathematics,” Mintz said. “It doesn’t necessarily map on to what you and I would identify as human learning.”

Despite producing advanced messages, ChatGPT does not understand the content of its output.

“It doesn’t mean that it sees meaning in these things; the meaning comes from all of us,” Mintz added.

What do professors think?

Dr. Larry Shaprio, a professor of philosophy at UW-Madison, was first skeptical of ChatGPT’s ability to cogently write, but was surprised by the chatbot’s products and linguistic ability.

Shapiro contextualized the chatbot’s progress using the

Turing test, created by British mathematician Alan Turing, which posits that if conversing with chatbots can deceive a human into believing that they are talking to another human, the computer is intelligent.

“I think ChatGPT passes, or soon will pass the ‘Turing test,’ but I don’t think it is intelligent. This means that Turing was

good enough, I believe, to pass at the level of someone with an undergraduate degree.”

Though experts may be able to pick out flaws in responses, like made up citations or attempts to fill character counts, the bot will appear accurate unless you know what you’re looking for, Mintz said.

“You could really be duped into believing ridiculous things,” Mintz explained, suggesting that more explicit falsehood warnings and tags from Microsoft, OpenAI and other AI developers on sensitive topics like vaccination may be a good step for identifying misinformation.

unaware of ChatGPT, while others use it or are nervous about it. He employed GPTgenerated responses in his course “English 433: Edmund Spenser,” where he had students analyze GPT poetry imitating the style of the Renaissance-era poet.

Calhoun added how the chatbot makes people think about information and knowledge differently, comparing it to the emergence and backlash around Wikipedia.

On students using ChatGPT for classwork, Calhoun isn’t wholly worried.

investing a lot of time.

“Technology is technology; the real ethics of how bad or how good it is is how you end up using it,” he said.

Educator perspectives on the bot vary, but Shapiro sees ways for it to be a tool or aspect of curriculum. One potential exercise he pondered would, in the spirit of the Turing test, have students examine several essays to determine which ones were written by classmates rather than the bot.

“I hope they see it as a tool that can make their lives easier while not, at the same time, replacing the need to develop skills on their own. Calculators didn’t put mathematicians or engineers out of business,” said Shapiro. “I expect that in time, once the novelty of ChatGPT has dissipated, we’ll view it in the same way as we do calculators, GPSs and other smart tools that make our lives easier.”

Mintz said that though he’s not sure about the economics, a conversation about AI’s impact on employment will be necessary.

“For the first time, we have something that’s really impacting more professional and white collar jobs, as opposed to more blue collar, manual labor,” he said. “I think this is something that’s definitely going to have to be discussed — we haven’t been in a situation where the college-educated are going to have their opportunities reduced by these technologies.”

wrong,” explained Shapiro.

Mintz also mentioned the Turing test and compared the acuity of ChatGPT’s responses with earlier chatbots like Microsoft’s ill-fated “Tay.”

“All of those original models would be able to pass [the Turing test] at the level of a teenager, a 13-year-old or 16-year-old who doesn’t know much about the world, ” said Mintz. “[But] ChatGPT is

Some professors began using ChatGPT responses in their curriculum. After finding out students used the chatbot for coursework during finals, Dr. Joshua Calhoun, a professor of English at UW-Madison, investigated it further.

“Because they’re students, and because we’re all learners, maybe they’re still trying to figure out [what to do] with a new tool — how do we use it well,” he said.

Calhoun said he’s found a large number of students

“Good essay questions can’t simply be answered by typing into a chatbot,” said Calhoun.

“If [a professor’s] essay question can be answered that way, even before an AI, I think there is some onus on the professor to think about what that prompt is asking students to demonstrate or to know.”

Where does AI go from here?

Though Mintz cautioned against predicting too far into the future of AI progress, he said one immediate use of chatbots is their ability to generate a rough draft without

LAUREN AGUILA/THE DAILY CARDINAL

Dr. Yonatan Mintz UW-Madison

“[But]

ChatGPT is good enough, I believe, to pass at the level of someone with an undergraduage degree ”

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Editor-in-Chief Sophia Vento Managing Editor Jessica Sonkin

NSSE survey invites students to share undergraduate experience

By Jasper Bernstein STAFF WRITER

The University of Wisconsin-Madison, along with the University of Wisconsin System, is gearing up for the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), inviting students to share thoughts on their undergraduate experiences. Freshmen and

Charitable Trusts in 1998 and has been a staple of college surveys ever since. In 2013, the NSSE was revised to introduce and improve metrics, increase comprehensibility and modernize the terminology used.

The survey gathers data across five categories — engagement in purposeful educational activities, institutional

The university has elected to take the survey every three years since 2001. In 2020, the response rate was significantly lower than in previous years, with only 9% of respondents compared to 29% in 2017 and 23% in 2014.

“In years where we’ve had higher response rates, we’ve had more ability to [provide

NSSE provides us with an initial round of that data summary that eventually gets posted on our website,” said Lazenby. “We also work to write several shorter reports that try and condense some of that — NSSE has many questions, and so we write shorter reports to condense that information down into more digestible pieces to

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seniors began to receive emails on Wednesday with an invitation to the survey, providing feedback intended to help improve the university.

Over 6.5 million students across 1,700 institutions have taken the survey since its start in 2000. Headquartered and founded at Indiana University’s School of Education, NSSE provides its institutions with reports and comparisons that allow them to measure how their students compare to those at similar institutions.

“[The NSSE asks] really well researched questions about pieces of the student experience. Some of that is participation in high impact practices — research or study abroad, things about your academic experience,” said Sara Lazenby, an institutional policy analyst for UW-Madison’s Data, Academic Planning and Institutional Research o ce (DAPIR). “With a survey that hundreds of institutions are participating in, we not only get our results, but we get the results of other universities across the country.”

Participating institutions pay upwards of $8,460 for access to the survey. The NSSE received its initial financial support from the Pew

academic requirements, attitudes towards the campus atmosphere, estimates of personal growth, and personal background and demographic details.

“[NSSE provides] a really nice set of longitudinal data that lets us look at comparison over time on particular questions,” said Lazenby.

DAPIR, a recentlyannounced fusion between UW-Madison’s Academic Planning and Institutional Research (APIR) and the Office of Data Management and Analytics Services (ODMAS), has taken the lead on administering NSSE.

“We provide institutional support for NSSE ... working with them to identify the populations of students that should get the survey and working with [the Institutional Review Board] to get permissions to make sure that we’re in compliance with research protocols,” explained Lazenby. “Then we work with on-campus units like university marketing and communications to come up with the promotional materials for NSSE that are encouraging students to respond.”

Promotional materials for NSSE can be found around campus, notably in dining halls.

departmental reports],” said Lazenby. “In years that we have had low response rate — 2020, when NSSE was in the field as the pandemic shutdown happened, that really limited our ability to do some of those more custom reports.”

Feedback from 2020’s survey was generally positive. According to the survey, 89% of seniors rated their UW-Madison experience as good or excellent, 88% would attend UW-Madison again and 91% rated the academic quality as good or excellent, significantly higher than peer institutions. Additionally, students reported higher quality interactions with academic advisors, faculty, student services sta , administrative sta and other students compared to other institutions.

The survey also showed that UW-Madison students scored high on four areas laid out in the ‘Wisconsin Experience’ — intellectual confidence, empathy and humility, relentless curiosity and purposeful action.

DAPIR and the NSSE will analyze the results as the survey closes on May 14, creating some of these custom reports upon request.

“Once the survey is closed,

help us then understand di erent areas of the university.”

Lazenby also noted feedback from the survey has helped to identify specific areas of improvement for the school.

“[At one point,] we noticed that our responses on questions about advising were less positive than some of our peer institutions. And that eventually led to the creation of the O ce of Undergraduate Advising as well as some other investments to add additional academic advisors across campus in an e ort to improve that student experience with academic advising,” said Lazenby.

DAPIR aims to increase their response rate by sending email reminders to students who haven’t finished the survey yet. Additionally, students who finish the survey before April 15 will be automatically entered into a ra e to win one of 50 Amazon gift cards worth $25 each.

“It’s always nice when we do get students to respond. It helps us improve the university. It helps us have the data to know what the students feel about their experience,” said Lazenby. “Really, we do take the responses of students to NSSE really seriously and act to improve on that.”

JEFF MILLER/UW-MADISON

UW-Madison responds to sta climate survey’s positive, concerning results

By Anthony Trombi and Beth Shoop COLLEGE NEWS EDITOR AND STAFF WRITER

The University of WisconsinMadison responded last week to results from the 2022 sta climate survey. The survey was distributed in spring of 2022 to gather sta members’ thoughts, experi-

according to a UW news release.

“The survey is one tool we can use to understand how our employees experience working at UW-Madison,” said Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Rob Cramer in the release.

Provost Karl Scholz and

ful in identifying where more focus is needed to ensure all UW-Madison employees feel safe, valued and that they belong,” said Cramer. “Each UW-Madison employee experiences the campus work environment in a di erent way and, as campus leaders, we need to understand the survey results and take action to create a community that makes us all proud.”

Some key findings from the survey include that 90% respondents reported feeling safe, 77% welcomed, 72% respected, 66% included, 66% like they belong and 65% valued. Another key finding is that a majority of respondents — 60% — reported being very satisfied or extremely satisfied with the climate in their department or work unit.

With the majority of sta respondents showing signs of feeling welcomed and safe, a large portion of university sta — 35% — reported being very likely or extremely likely to leave their current job in the next 12 months.

38% of sta said they had personally experienced this type of behavior on campus in the last three years.

“Hostile and intimidating behavior has no place in the workplace,” Scholz said. “We will continue to work with our partners in the O ce of Human Resources to address these concerns and ensure that our campus culture is one that makes UW-Madison a great place to work for all of our employees.”

The survey also highlighted that 6% of sta reported personally experiencing sexual harassment on campus in the last three years. Women and those who identified as nonbinary or another gender were twice as likely to report experiencing sexual harassment compared to men.

ences and concerns about working at UW-Madison, according to the survey.

The survey was distributed to all academic and university sta members, limited appointees who do not hold a faculty position and postdoctoral candidates. In total, approximately 16,800 people received the survey with a 38% response rate,

Cramer explained the importance of UW-Madison deans and directors working with their leadership teams in reviewing the climate survey results. Analyzing and reviewing the results will aid administrators in identifying specific actions to improve the overall sta work experience.

“The Sta Climate Survey is use-

Disconcerting results

Despite positive findings, the survey also showed disconcerting results pertaining to sta witnessing and experiencing hostile or intimidating behavior on campus. Overall, 44% of sta reported that in the last three years they personally witnessed hostile or intimidating behavior on campus. Continually,

Compared to the 2021 student campus climate survey, 23% of students reported witnessing hostile or intimidating behavior on campus and 14% reported experiencing hostile or intimidating behavior — significantly less than sta . Sta with a disability, 52.4%, and a chronic physical or mental health condition, 44.9%, reported having experienced more hostile or intimidating behavior on campus. Individuals who identified as nonbinary or another gender, 47.5%, were more likely to witness hostile or intimidating behavior on campus.

According to the news release, a group of representatives from the Provost’s O ce and the O ce of Human Resources’ Workforce Relations have already started to investigate strategies to increase education about hostile and intimidating behavior processes and prevention on campus.

Sta who resonded to the survey were asked to think about sexual harassment at UW-Madison where most respondents, 75.7%, felt that sexual harassment is taken seriously on campus. However, only 51.5% reported knowing which steps to take when a person comes to them with a problem with sexual harassment, and only 39.4% reported that the current process for resolving complaints of sexual harassment is e ective.

The university is in the process of analyzing the qualitative or open-ended responses available on the online dashboard located on the survey website. There are numerous UW-Madison departments and divisions that aid with ongoing discussions about the sta climate survey.

“This was the first time that a university-wide Sta Climate Survey was done, and we are reviewing when it makes sense to run it again,” said Kelly Conforti Rupp, Assistant Vice Provost for Faculty and Sta A airs.

Common Council amends zoning code to increase housing accessibility for renters despite community concerns

By Noe Goldhaber STAFF WRITER

The Common Council amended a section of Madison’s zoning code in order to change the definition of “family” in single-family homes by a 13-6 vote Tuesday in an effort to address the city’s housing shortage.

Previously, one-third of Madison was zoned to prohibit more than two unrelated renters from living together. In these same areas, owner-occupied housing allowed up to five unrelated individuals to live together.

The code changes the definition of “family” to remove the requirement that family members be related by blood, marriage or adoption, allowing up to five unrelated people to rent housing units together. The code also allows for the same number of people to live together regardless of whether they are renters or homeowners.

The original proposal said the previous zoning law discriminated against people of color in Madison, who are more likely to be renters than homeowners.

“People of color and lower income residents are disproportionately affected by the current zoning definition of ‘family’ because they are more likely to be renters and more likely to need to share a housing unit to afford rent,” the proposal said.

Madison Street Medicine employee Allison Davidson, who provides housing for people experiencing homelessness, voiced support for the change. She said the previous definition of family harms vulnerable communities in Madison.

“Many of the individuals experiencing homelessness we serve rely on staying

with friends [or with each other] both long and short term while they try to obtain other housing,” Davidson said. “This definition of family is clearly outdated and is being used to target populations that are supposed to be protected classes in this city.”

Other community members raised concerns about the changes in their neighborhoods.

While the bill is targeted towards improving equity for renters, some single-family homeowners are concerned about student housing landlords raising prices for housing, further pushing families and renters out of a ordable housing.

“As currently written, the definition will encourage new concentrations of student housing in what are now considered family-oriented neighborhoods...without increasing the availability of housing for low-income families,” said community member Claude Kazanski.

Laura Schwendinger, another community member, said the changes would increase noise levels in the neighborhood, which she believes is already “too loud.”

“This action will destroy the fabric of our community,” homeowner Neil McCallum said. “We understand that there is an affordable housing crisis in the city, but stuffing people in the available housing is not a solution to the problem.”

A ordable student housing

Patrick Heck, District 2 alder and sponsor of the new change, said University of Wisconsin-Madison students will have more housing options as a result of the amendment.

“It should increase housing options for students living in these neighborhoods,” Heck said. “This could lower rental prices

for some students and others.”

District 8 Alder Juliana Bennett also rejects the rhetoric made against students.

“We are in a student housing crisis,” Bennett said. “The reason this helps the student housing crisis is because all of the current apartments being built are luxury high rises. This is serving the low- to moderate-income students that can’t afford anywhere else to live in the city.”

In contrast, District 3 Alder Erik Paulson does not believe the zoning laws will ultimately impact student housing.

“I don’t think this will actually make much of a di erence for UW students,” Paulson said. “For one, we’ve seen more

and more students move closer to campus in buildings where the two-person limit already doesn’t apply.”

Despite opposition, Heck said the new change passed will increase affordable housing choices for renters, including students, young adults and retirees.

“While some areas nearer to campus could possibly see more student renters and there could eventually be some changes to these neighborhoods, I believe we can address those in future years,” Heck said. “The option of continuing to discriminate against students and others should be off the table.”

COURTESY OF UW-MADISON STUDENTS FOR JUSTICE IN PALESTINE

Collective Impact Podcast hopes to achieve community and conversation

By Liam Beran STAFF WRITER

A new student-run podcast, which launched this February, aims to give a platform to Madison residents in marginalized communities. “The process of getting here has been one filled with learning and excitement,” said Mina Yildiz, a first-year University of Wisconsin-Madison student and the host of the Collective Impact Podcast, which released its first non-demo episode on Feb. 21.

“I feel like my story is often overlooked when people have conversations with me or meet me — where I am now, people don’t recognize the process of my life to have got to that moment,” said Yildiz.

Yildiz spoke of her many identities — a woman of color, someone with chronic health conditions

and an immigrant — Yildiz details how those marginalized communities change how she experiences events. Yildiz says, “Sharing stories is a way for people to build collective understanding.”

“[And] by allocating that collective identity, you can make these new human connections, these new relationships and new ambitions in wanting to make the world in a way that promotes understanding, prompts love and promotes positivity in a way I think society needs a little bit more of,” Yildiz explained.

Through the Collective Impact Podcast, Yildiz and Quinn Henneger — also a first-year student — highlight the diversity of experiences in the Madison community. Yildiz is the host and founder of the podcast, while Henneger works on its social

media and promotion.

“I have parts of my identity that are marginalized a lot, and so seeing how those identities have intertwined with each other and seeing how I’m treated in di erent places has definitely inspired myself to raise those who are in historically marginalized communities, to make sure their voice is heard — having them on the podcast, saying what they want to say,” Henneger said.

Making Collective Impact

Collective Impact is the product of internships Yildiz and Henneger have with the Associated Students of Madison (ASM), UW-Madison’s student governance body. While visiting her grandparents in Turkey, Yildiz was inspired to make a community-focused project on campus.

“I knew that I wanted to create a project from the ground up, and I learned about grassroot initiatives,” she said. “When I came back, I jotted down a rough idea of the Collective Impact Podcast.”

When ASM sent out an email soliciting applicants for a grassroots organizing internship, “it really was kind of a miracle,” Yildiz added.

“It’s like, okay, this is something that I want to do, and now there is an internship that can provide resources and help facilitate that for me,” she said.

Henneger began working with Yildiz after hearing about her work and taking interest in it. They had prior experience in social media management, which lent well to the collaboration between them and Yildiz.

“A big part of the podcast is for

it to reach as many people as possible,” Henneger said. “I jumped on the project and became a collaborator and just took over the social media aspect.”

Both Yildiz and Henneger took courses on ideas surrounding community and social change prior to working on the podcast. Yildiz said this experience and other relationships she built early on helped create the connections necessary for building Collective Impact.

Prior to working with Henneger, Yildiz published an initial demo episode interviewing Justice Castañeda, a doctoral candidate focusing on the impact housing policy, community violence and economic development have on youth outcomes. This initial experience, combined with bringing in Henneger, helped develop the podcast’s vision, according to Yildiz.

Yildiz works under Castañeda, executive director at the Commonwealth Development, a non-profit, by “supporting and preserving the vitality of neighborhoods in the Madison Metropolitan area.” Castañeda shared “little parts of his story” during Yildiz’s employment, and hearing those stories made her want to better understand his story and share it with the public.

“Who is this person on a deeper level? What have they been through, and how did they get where they are now,” were the questions that came to Yildiz’s mind before seeking to interview Castañeda for the podcast.

In the demo episode, Castañeda shares his story with Yildiz. Much

of it centers around his continuous educational development, which occurred despite di culties with living accommodations, family and the law.

“I barely graduated high school,” Castañeda said during the episode.

The demo episode provided a valuable base for Yildiz to learn from, and lessons learned from it have been implemented into her creative process, she explained.

“During the process of interviewing [Castañeda] and then making it public to everyone, it was a huge learning experience for me — I just found his story very inspirational, and it was definitely one of the major points of why I began the project,” Yildiz said.

The process of creating a podcast from pre-interviewing a subject to publication takes about a month, Yildiz said. Moving forward, she and Henneger plan to release one episode per month.

Yildiz already feels a sense of growth in her work on the podcast and noticed a difference between the demo episode with Castañeda and the first official episode with Aaron Bird Bear, UW-Madison’s former and first director of tribal relations.

“I’m learning these skills. I’ve never really put myself out there, I’ve never really had a social media platform in a way where I kinda expose myself to the public. I wanted to use media platforms in a way to facilitate other people and make sure that they’re uplifted, that their stories are heard,” Yildiz said. “That’s what makes any project fun, the process.”

Black leaders, community members raise their voices at Capitol advocacy day

By Hina Suzuki STAFF WRITER

The Black Legislative Action Coalition of Wisconsin (BLAC-WI) hosted the 2023 Black Advocacy Day at the Wisconsin State Capitol on Tuesday in celebration of Black History Month.

More than 200 participants from across the state gathered to learn how to advocate on issues impacting their community from organization leaders and legislators.

“We are part of a historical day,” Sen. Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee) said to the participants. “We have never had 200 people come and advocate in this building in my entire career here.”

Taylor, the second Black woman ever to serve in the state senate, has represented the 4th Senate District since 2004.

Brenda Jackson, a small business owner from Milwaukee, said she came to the event to increase her awareness of governmental a airs.

“I joined to see how the government operates and learn what services they o er for the Black community in Milwaukee,”

Jackson said. “I also came to the Capitol to talk to our Black advocates and representatives.”

BLAC-WI is a newly formed group of Black-led organizations that advocates for the needs of the Black community in Wisconsin, according to the Black Advocacy Day event website. The organizations include Wisconsin Voices, the Wisconsin Black Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Milwaukee Urban League.

Tuesday’s event o ered panel discussions where participants explored topics regarding criminal justice, education, economic development, lead water safety issues, police reform and voter protection. Participants also had an opportunity to attend an advocacy training workshop.

Jason Fields, a former Democratic member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, spoke to small business owners in the audience. He encouraged them to interact with elected o cials and governmental entities to reach their long-term goals and benefit their financial interests as business owners, mentioning Gov. Tony Evers’ 2023-25 executive budget as a poten-

tial opportunity.

“Every elected o cial on every level, you need to know who they are, and they need to know you,” Fields said.

At the advocacy training workshop, participants learned about lobbying from leaders from Wisconsin Voices, a nonpartisan organization that promotes civic engagement and participation.

“What people who advocate for better policy in Wisconsin could do a better job of is to get people to hear [at the capitol],” Jamie Lynn Crofts, the policy director at Wisconsin Voices said. “When there is no one here to oppose, it’s so much easier for legislators to pass laws that are unfair.”

Lotoya White, the partnership and organizing director at Wisconsin Voices, instructed participants to share personal stories when talking about issues with legislators.

“Sharing your story to show why you are so adamant about this issue helps change somebody else’s life,” White said.

BLAC-WI invited Dr. Hasan Je ries, an associate professor of

history at the Ohio State University, as the event’s keynote speaker. During his speech, Je ries told participants to use their voices and fight against laws he said were rooted in racism and inequality.

“Be advocates and raise your voice, not just for yourself but for the members of your com-

munity,” Je ries said. “Hold the people working at places like the Capitol accountable.”

Participants visited their elected o cials after workshops and discussions. The Black Advocacy Day event was followed by a reception hosted by Gov. Tony Evers at the Governor’s Mansion.

Badger Softball sweeps in Boca Raton

By Justin Alpert SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Wisconsin (6-6) collected four wins this weekend at the Joan Joyce Classic in Boca Raton, Florida. The Badgers took down Boston College (8-7) before beating North Carolina (6-9) twice and finishing the tournament by walking o Villanova (6-9).

Third baseman Skylar Sirdashney’s emergence as an e ective leado hitter, combined with Wisconsin’s middle-of-the-order power and some stellar pitching, helped the Badgers even up their early-season record after a rough start.

Friday | 6-0 W vs. Boston

College

Infielder Brooke Ku el starred in the Friday contest. She opened the scoring with a solo home run — her second of the season — in the second inning, then added an RBI double in the fourth. A run-scoring walk added some insurance in Wisconsin’s threerun seventh inning. Ku el, batting cleanup, finished 3-for-3 with three RBI, a run and a walk.

Maddie Schwartz, meanwhile, took care of the Eagles without much trouble. In six shutout frames she struck out five and held BC to five hits. The Eagles had runners in scoring position in the first, third and fourth innings, but Schwartz ended those threats with two strikeouts and a double play.

The Badgers had a modest seven hits in the victory, but BC pitchers did issue nine walks. Katie Keller led the way with three free passes. Sirdashney drew a walk as well, and she also doubled in a two-hit, one-RBI performance.

Friday | 4-2

W vs. North Carolina

Wisconsin continued the trend of scoring early in games, putting up three runs in the first inning versus UNC. Sirdashney drew a leado walk before Kayla Konwent homered to dead center, putting the Badgers up 2-0. Center fielder Molly Schlosser, who’d been fairly quiet at the plate, extended the lead with an RBI triple.

Paytn Monticelli, at her absolute best, dominated in the circle for Wisconsin. In a 120-pitch complete game the freshman yielded four hits and two unearned runs — a sixth-inning home run followed an Ellie Hubbard error. Monticelli’s 13

strikeouts was the highest singlegame total for a Badger pitcher since 2012.

Wisconsin bested UNC despite losing the baserunning battle — the Badgers went 0-for-3 in stolen-base attempts, while the Tar Heels stole three bags on four attempts. Luckily, Monticelli was too untouchable for UNC to drive in those runners.

Saturday | 5-4 W vs. North Carolina

The second tilt against the Tar Heels started exactly like the first: Sirdashney got aboard and Konwent followed with a two-run shot, her third home run of the season.

Left fielder Peyton Bannon made it 3-0 with a sacrifice fly in the fourth. The Badgers added another two runs in the seventh on a Sirdashney RBI double and a Keller sacrifice fly. Monticelli, back in the circle after her Friday masterpiece, wasn’t missing as many bats but still got through 6.2 scoreless innings. One out from being shut out, however, the Tar Heels started teeing o . A single, double, single and triple later, Monticelli was done and Tessa Magnanimo entered with a 5-3 lead.

Magnanimo couldn’t get the job done, either, allowing a walk and an RBI single. With the tying run on second, Wisconsin handed the ball to Schwartz, who induced a groundout and secured the 5-4 victory.

Saturday | 3-2 W

vs. Villanova

The Badgers trailed for the first time all weekend when Schwartz allowed a second-inning run. Keller tied it in the third, driving in shortstop Ellie Hubbard as Hubbard had reached second on her first extra-base hit of the season.

Villanova chased Schwartz with two hits and a run to begin the fourth inning. In three-plus innings she allowed six hits and two runs with a pair of strikeouts on 57 pitches.

Gabi Salo entered and posted the best performance of her career. The junior, who totaled just 16 innings with unremarkable results from 2021-22, pitched four hitless, scoreless innings with six strikeouts. Salo now boasts a 0.75 ERA through 9.1 innings this season and has proven her worth as a valuable relief option and spot starter. Salo’s stellar relief work set the stage for a Badger victory. Ava

Kuszak walked and reached third, setting up Sirdashney for a walk-o RBI bunt.

Continued improvement

The 2022 Badgers were a very flawed team, with a shallow lineup that didn’t put enough balls in play and, conversely, a pitching sta too prone to contact.

Through 12 games, Wisconsin has shown signs of considerable improvement in those areas. Ku el has slashed .333/.429/.722 with two home runs and six RBI in the cleanup spot, forcing pitchers to attack Konwent. Unsurprisingly, they’re having little luck, as Konwent has a 1.068 OPS with three home runs and nine RBI.

Whereas in 2022 the Badgers used Konwent as a leado hitter, they now slot her in the three-hole. This is now possible thanks to the arrival of Keller (.429 on-base percentage) and the elevation of Sirdashney to the leado spot. Sirdashney went 4-for-13 in her first weekend atop Wisconsin’s order and is having her best season to date, shattering previous career-highs with a .306/.375/.417 slash line.

As a whole, Wisconsin’s lineup

is finding various ways to drive baserunners home. In Boca Raton, the Badgers scored twice on sacrifice flies and twice on sacrifice bunts — including Sirdashney’s game-winner.

Wisconsin is still striking out a lot — third-most in the Big Ten with 71 punchouts thus far — but that’s less concerning as long as the Badgers manufacture runs this e ectively.

While the lineup develops its identity, Wisconsin’s pitching sta remains a massive strength, ranking third in the conference with a team ERA of 1.89. After finishing 13th in strikeouts last season, the Badgers’ middle-ofthe-pack ranking through 12 games is certainly encouraging. And, as long as Monticelli keeps logging innings, Wisconsin will enjoy a steady stream of strikeouts.

If Salo continues to shine, she may become a legitimate contributor alongside Schwartz and Monticelli, maybe pushing Magnanimo further down the depth chart.

The Badgers now head to Bloomington, Indiana for five games this weekend, starting Saturday. They’ll face UW-Green Bay, Indiana University-Purdue, Purdue Fort Wayne and Indiana University.

Wisconsin buries Minnesota State, secure spot in WCHA Finals

By Maddie Sacks STAFF WRITER

The Wisconsin Women’s Hockey team (25-9-2) showed up and showed out against the Minnesota State Mavericks (1520-1) in game two of the WCHA playo s, winning 4-1.

After a nerve-wracking start for Badger fans, in which Wisconsin lost the first period, they ultimately pulled through and secured a spot in the finals.

The first period was played pretty evenly, but the Badgers got more looks on goal. The Mavericks fumbled a huge opportunity about two minutes into the period, as a shot flew just above the net.

With two minutes left in the period, Minnesota State struck first. Sydney Langseth shot the goal from just in front of the net. The Badgers then went on a power play, but were unable to capitalize. The period ended 1-0 MSU.

In the second, Wisconsin maintained a significant advantage in shots on goal, nearly doubling the Mavericks. Finally, Wisconsin was able to get a shot to fall.

Britta Curl scored the first goal to tie up the game with 10:31 left in the period. Jesse Compher fired the puck at the Mavericks’ goalie Alexa Berg. A diving Curl swatted the deflec-

tion in to tie it at 1-1.

Just over a minute later, Laila Edwards took the lead for the Badgers. She scored an incredible wrap-around goal that sent the puck through the Berg’s legs and deflected o the far-side post to make it 2-1 Wisconsin.

Harvey then exchanged a roughing penalty with a Maverick and Sophie Shirley followed, committing a tripping penalty that resulted in a 3-on-4. Failing to capitalize on any of the penalties, the period ended 2-1 Wisconsin.

With under two minutes into the third period, Sarah Wozniewicz cushioned the Badger lead. The goal was

scored after the puck appeared through heavy traffic in front of the goal. Wozniewicz demonstrated impressive patience, waiting for proper puck placement before shooting it in to push the lead to 3-1.

The Badgers absolutely smothered the Mavericks in the third period, culminating in another Lacey Eden on a power play. Eden skated two-on-two alongside Casey O’Brien who drew attention away from the puck, giving Eden a split second to shoot.

She capitalized and made the impressive shot to the right side of the goal, 4-1 Wisconsin. Frustrated, the Mavericks picked

up a penalty for slashing, but the game ended at 4-1

Following the win, Wisconsin is headed to the finals to play against their biggest rival, the Minnesota Gophers. Despite the stakes for the Badgers, they are calm and collected heading into the most important weekend of the year.

“They’re a great team and I think we’ve had their number this year, but that doesn’t mean anything more, it’s a clean slate and a new season,” Edwards said in a statement.

Wisconsin will face the Minnesota Gophers at Ridder Arena on Friday at 5 p.m. for the WCHA Final Faceo

TAYLOR WOLFRAM/THE DAILY CARDINAL

‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ is the MCU at its worst

By Spencer Ball STAFF WRITER

There’s a scene in “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” where our hero Scott Lang is caught in a “probability storm.” Thousands to millions of Ant-Man clones pop into existence around him, representing every possible choice he could make at each moment. Despite being the manifest of infinite possibilities, the clones invariably have one thing to say upon appearing: “What the hell?”

If the creative team was trying to make a fourth-wall-breaking joke in this scene about the film’s probable critical reaction, then they succeeded spectacularly. Because no matter how much I think about this movie, “What the hell?” is my response every time.

Much of the “Quantumania” plot can be gleaned from the title. Lang is going about his daily postuniverse-saving life when his daughter Cassie’s science experiment goes awry. The malfunction sends the two, along with Hope van Dyne (the Wasp), and her parents Hank and Janet, to the Quantum Realm, a hidden universe that can be accessed by shrinking down below the size of atoms. There, the family encounters all flavors of subatomic oddities including an ooze-imbibing alien race, living gelatinous buildings and creatures that look like humanoid broccoli.

But the Langs and van Dynes are far from alone. Much of the Quantum Realm is now under the merciless rule of Kang the Conqueror, one of many multiversal Kang variants who was exiled there by other Kangs. It turns out that this Kang has a history with Janet from her 30 years in the Quantum Realm, and our heroes are Kang’s best

chance to escape his otherworldly prison and resume terrorizing other timelines.

I can encapsulate many of the film’s flaws by saying it feels like a Saturday morning cartoon — and not a particularly good one. In one sense, this is literal, as the film’s visuals are such an explosion of CGI that the movie may as well have been animated. In another, the film appears so concerned with making sure every single moment is entertaining on paper that it fails to approach anything worthwhile.

The weakest link of “Quantumania” is the writing. The film never provides viewers with a solid grasp of what is at stake if this Kang escapes, nor does it ground the movie in character-based emotional stakes beyond shallow cliché. It even fails to capitalize on stakes suggested in the trailer.

While it is revealed that Kang attempted to bribe Janet with the chance to go back in time to when her daughter was young, he only ever o ers to send Scott back to the present despite the time he missed with Cassie due to a prison stint and the Blip. What’s more, the beats of the third act are painfully predictable and the ending trivializes the entire movie that came before it.

Given that this is the final product, it’s getting harder to see Marvel as anything but a soulless corporate machine which knows that even if it makes a bad movie, it’ll make hundreds of millions of dollars anyway. And this isn’t coming from a nose-curling, Scorsese-praising cynic who hates superheroes and fun. I hold the dubious achievement of having watched everything in the Marvel Cinematic Universe — even the DVD one-shots, Ed Norton as the Hulk and the eight-episode a ront

that is “Inhumans.” There are very few Marvel products I wouldn’t say I liked.

Even the worst movies in the early phases functioned as passable standalone entertainment. The default formula — a paintby-numbers hero’s journey, one or more of a CGI army, a same-vssame fight, and a big beam in the sky for the climax and a teaser of the next movie at the end to keep you hooked — produced movies that were enjoyable, if sometimes uninspired. Phases 1-3 cared about telling discrete stories, and the interconnected cinematic universe of it all was just a way to make the stories bigger and bigger.

When I saw Marvel start to take more creative risks in Phase 4 and stray from the sacred formula, I was hoping these movies would actually be better than

the formulaic films that came before. Instead, the quality of the MCU is all over the place, and the defense of weaker fare is that it sets up unseen future projects. It pains me to see the argument that “Quantumania” never needed to be that good, since the real point was introducing Kang.

To make matters worse, the film fails there too. “Quantumania” has the rare honor of su ering from too little exposition, alienating casual and die-hard audiences alike. For viewers who never saw Kang introduced in the final episode of “Loki,” the significance of Kang and his variants is near-totally lost. Meanwhile, if you’ve met He Who Remains, then “Quantumania” o ers nothing new. We already know an inexorable wave of evil Kang variants is on the way and a war between multiverses is com-

ing, and the main takeaway of this film is exactly that.

Perhaps the best thing I can say about “Quantumania” is that it’s ino ensive. The performances by the core cast are perfectly solid given the material — I disagree with some viewers’ maligning of Kathryn Newton — and Jonathan Majors steals the show as a villain I’m sure I’ll love in the future.

The film wasn’t a painful watch, and my criticism lies in it being consistently not good rather than actively bad. But when the most enjoyable part of my theater experience was involuntarily laughing out loud whenever M.O.D.O.K. came on-screen with Corey Stoll’s stretched-out CGI face, it’s hard not to lose some optimism about the MCU and its future.

And it didn’t even have Luis.

Grade: D

Pop singer Ella Jane charms High Noon Saloon

By Lillian Mihelich STAFF WRITER

A charismatic artist who lives in Brooklyn, New York, Ella Jane graced her fans at the High Noon Saloon last Thursday night. Her powerful vocals and intimate disposition towards the crowd were telling of her character and performance mastery.

Ash Tuesday, Jane’s fourth-time opener from Macon, Georgia, set the night’s tone with angsty pop songs executed with impressive voice control. Alongside immensely talented drummer Isabella — known as Splendi on Spotify — and guitarist Sophie Price, the three covered Demi Lovato’s “La La Land,” a nostalgic hit that warmed up the crowd for Jane’s setlist.

It was “detrimental weather for me but a Thursday for y’all,” said Tuesday. Her dry humor was playful, and she made it a point to thank the resilient Wisconsin crowd for their attendance on the snowy evening.

Jane entered the stage wearing a black blazer embellished with

white embroidery that read “EJ” and “Marginalia,” the title of her nine-track album released in 2022. Her platinum blonde cut reflected the pink and red lights trickling into her loving crowd. Jane has an infectious smile and between water sips she would speak to the audience as if she’d known them her whole life.

It’s no surprise that Jane has a loyal fanbase. From the first song she performed, “7,” she interacted directly with her audience, made herself available to photographers and smiled for fans’ videos. She related to attendees by detailing her experience growing up in a small town, touching on the familiarity of sitting in empty parking lots and going to drive-throughs when opportunities were sparse. This translated into her song “AUGUST IS A FEVER” that fans eagerly clapped along to.

A group of four friends and family members said they’d seen Jane perform three times and simply had to come to a fourth performance. Julia, a high schooler from Wauwatosa whose favorite song

of Jane’s is “bored & blind,” also attended alongside her mom.

Between pulling out an acoustic guitar to play her song “time on” in which she joked about a tumultuous experience with a British man during her one year of college and moving onto the keyboard for “Thief,” an emotion-packed song, Jane proved her multifacetedness. Members of the crowd cried as Jane sang, “I think I’m pushing my luck too far trying to get back to where we are.”

Jane went on to sing Paramore’s “Ain’t It Fun,” where she and her bandmates, guitarist Nicole and drummer Quentin, lit up the venue. There was singing on the floor and an explosion of laughter from the stage.

“God Bless Paramore,” said Jane.

During “Calling Card,” the crowd was split into sections to sing along, and Jane beamed with pride as she heard its “la la la la’s”. The band also played the songs “Sore Loser,” “You Shouldn’t Have Said That,” “Warhol,” “I Wanna,” “The City,” “Crash Cart” and closed with, “nothing else i could do.”

Jane has a broad range from raspy to whimsical high notes that pierce through her ballads. She has a confidence that is convincing and inspiring. She noted the three-year anniversary of “the city” along with her fanbase, whom she wasn’t afraid to walk among when cheering on her opener.

“At the end the change is you

guys.” she said. “I was so young and had no idea you guys are out here.”

There will be many more of us out here as Jane continues her musical career. She announced Friday, Feb. 24 on her Instagram, @ellajanemusic that she would be releasing a deluxe version of “Marginalia” on March 24 with two “reimagined” songs.

ALEXA COLEMAN/THE DAILY CARDINAL

The sex industry, pornography, violence

By Priyanka Vasavan OPINION EDITOR

With the rise of sex positivity, both culturally and educationally, America’s collective attitude towards sex has experienced rampant progression post-20th century. While negative connotations toward sex still prevail — specifically within religious communities — shame and sex have become increasingly disentangled.

The staunch support of sex workers and a push for female sexual liberation has accompanied this shift. Sex work is an umbrella term for an adult who receives money or goods in exchange for sexual services. This does not include pornography sites or apps like OnlyFans which are executed through online services.

Sex work is currently illegal in the United States, except for a few counties in Nevada. The call to decriminalize sex work is borne from unfavorable working conditions which do not grant workers access to healthcare and create constraints in reporting violence and assaults. In spite of these circumstances, as of 2018, sex workers comprised one in five emergency room sexual assault reports.

The 2002 legalization of prostitution in Germany — cited as “The German Model” — created an increase in the market demand, and subsequently, an increase in tra cking. Another approach to ending sex work is the “Nordic Model,” which targets third parties and clients instead of the workers. Executed in France in 2016, this resulted in a slew of other issues such as decreased payment but most notably an increase in the killings of sex workers.

Sex work can create dangerous circumstances, regardless of the form and regardless of criminalization status. This danger increases for already vulnerable communities. In 2015, 11% of transgender Americans had participated in sex work.

Advocates for empowering those within the industry and normalizing it as a line of work tend to omit a crucial detail: most people in the sex industry do not want to be in the sex industry.

The internet’s effect on the sex industry

While pornography is not included under U.S. law as sex work, the long-term psychological and physical e ects traditional workers su er from are extended to those within the porn industry. These include PTSD, increased exposure to rape and STDs.

Most Americans between the ages of 18 and 35 have watched pornography within the last six months. Because of its commonality, the media form is generally subject to less scrutiny than prostitution. However, the e ects of watching pornography ultimately perpetuate the distorted views of women which make safe sex work an insurmountable goal.

Aside from the personal accounts and overwhelming statistics regarding child rape, nonconsensual behavior and illegal recordings distributed on pornography sites like PornHub, the permanency of these videos — regardless of delayed site action — is a testimony to both the irreversibility of the internet and nature of the sex industry.

Nevertheless, the porn industry has been granted the same opportu-

nities for exploitation as prostitution while still maintaining a legal, and vastly unregulated, status under the First Amendment.

Pornography and sexual violence

Whether porn usage causes violence — or exposure to one naturally precedes the other — is still debated. However, men who have a history

more often than not — used as a vehicle for male pleasure. A 2019 study found that of the 50 most popular porn videos, 88% contained physical violence, 49% verbal abuse and 15% nonconsensual behavior.

There are numerous, often contradicting reports on how pornography a ects the psyche of young men —

However, anti-sex-positivity rhetoric is not new. In the 1980s when the movement first gained traction, radical feminists like Andrea Dworkin said sex-positivity was detractive in its objectification of women — specifically through its encouragement of sex work and pornography.

Despite the sexlessness of our generation, finding liberation in sex has become a common goal among young women. The thought process is that liberation is derived from the accumulation of consensual sexual partners: that female agency is found through the act of consensual sex — regardless of pleasure or genuine control.

The hypersexualization of young women in the name of empowerment is an epidemic, one that puts girls at an increased risk of violence, eating disorders and depression. It enforces the belief that if one sexualizes oneself, all harmful e ects tied to hypersexualization are absolved — that if you decide when, how and where to sexualize yourself, you have obtained agency.

of sexual aggression towards women tend to also abuse porn.

In the last decade, porn usage has steadily increased while sexual activity among both men and women is at a documented low. This means that now more than ever young Americans are learning about sex through pornography. Their understanding of normal sexual behavior is orchestrated by a multi-billion dollar industry that is unconcerned with its aftermath.

This is particularly alarming considering that within the scope of a porn video, violence, degradation and humiliation directed at women are —

and how that correlates to our current gender violence problem. Regardless, it is not unreasonable to assume that continuous viewing of unrealistic, violent sex can set the groundwork for a culture that conflates sexual exploration with exploitation.

Liberation doesn’t start in the bedroom

The original intent of sex-positive feminism was to grant women the freedom to explore their sexuality. Like many labels broad enough for open interpretation, modern sex positivity has become corrupted to the point of negating its original purpose.

Telling young women that reclaiming sexuality is powerful is synonymous with telling a bull that charging into his cage makes him bold. It evades the root of the problem — that there’s a cage at all.

Additionally, it ignores the current gender role landscape which dictates the disparity between men and women within sexual relationships. Compared to heterosexual men, heterosexual women are more likely to feel regret after a sexual situation if there is no established relationship with said partner.

Readmore@dailycardinal.com

Say goodbye to affirmative action

By Jason Li STAFF WRITER

These days, it’s hard to miss all the headlines covering the race for the open seat in the Wisconsin Supreme Court. With implications on hot-topic issues like abortion and Wisconsin’s gerrymandered maps, both Democrats and Republicans are rallying support for their candidates.

This consequential race is a result from what happened eight months ago — the nation’s highest court overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade case and eliminating the constitutional right to abortion.

Through this case, the Supreme Court has shown both blatant disregard for legal precedent and a willingness to take decisive action at the expense of popular sentiment. I believe the court will continue this pattern of behavior when dealing with another contentious, far-reaching issue: a rmative action in education.

A rmative action is a set of policies that aim to increase representation of historically disadvantaged groups in education, employment and other areas of society. It has been a subject of legal and political debate for decades. Some argue a rmative action is neccesary to address systemic inequalities and promote diversity, while others argue it amounts to reverse discrimination and violates the principle of equal treatment. While the Supreme Court previously upheld its constitutionality, the new conservative majority seems likely to end a rmative action as we know it.

This prediction stems from

two ongoing cases — Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill — the court agreed to take on. The cases accuse admissions o ces at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill of discrimination against white and Asian applicants by giving preference to Black, Hispanic and Native Americans.

While these cases focus on arguments previously explored, the nature of how the court interacts with these arguments has been alarming. With hearings dating back to October 2022, the Supreme Court has since made it clear they don’t see the justification of a rmative action.

“I’ve heard the word diversity quite a few times, and I don’t have a clue what it means… It seems to mean everything for everyone,”

Justice Clarence Thomas said in a court hearing.

Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr. expressed similar sentiments when he said college admissions are “a zero-sum game” and questioned what an “underrepresented minority” even means. This stance has deeply shaken the morale of those in higher education, with some colleges even formulating plans for expected changes.

Most notably, the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions O cers issued a recommendation earlier this year stating that colleges should “establish a review team in early 2023 that includes your institution’s legal counsel” to pre-

pare for the court’s decision.

This makes sense, considering the Supreme Court is expected to release a decision on the cases as early as this upcoming month.

As we wait for the Supreme Court ruling, I argue the court should adhere to decades-long legal precedent and empirical data by upholding the practice of a rmative action in education.

A rmative action has been proven necessary in addressing systemic racial inequality. That’s because the practice helps ensure students from historically disadvantaged groups have a fair shot at higher education. This e ect is made evident when we examine what happens when a rmative action is banned.

The University of California and University of Michigan systems, two top public universities, were forced to ban a rmative action 15 years ago. Since then, both systems spent hundreds of millions of dollars to boost racial diversity within its student population but fell woefully short.

In 2021, the freshman class at the University of California, Berkeley had a 3.7% Black student enrollment out of a class of 6,931 students.

That same year, the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor had a 4% Black student enrollment despite having a special admissions o ce in Detroit to recruit Black students. Contrast this with Harvard, which has double the number of Black students enrolled at 9.37%. While the e ectiveness of a rmative action may not be hotly contested, the cost and morality of the practice is.

Despite being e ective, it is important to recognize the practice of a rmative action is flawed in its disproportionate discrimination against certain racial groups. Speaking from the perspective of the individual student applicant, a rmative action is not fair nor consistent with meritocracy.

That said, these issues do not warrant a complete overhaul of the practice — more so a further examination of potential alternatives.

For example, one promising option is to transition from raceconscious policies towards socioeconomic-based a rmative action. This would eliminate concerns about racial discrimination while still helping historically underrepresented groups. With all the potential options, e orts should be made to improve and refine a rmative action policies to ensure they are e ective and fair for all students.

However, this mindset conflicts

directly with that of the Supreme Court. From court hearings and subsequent deliberations, it is clear the conservative majority sees a rmative action as a wholly unlawful practice and therefore would not consider any alternatives or changes. Their singular focus is striking down a rmative action, which would undermine the years of progress made in promoting diversity and addressing systemic inequality in higher education.

If the Supreme Court does indeed strike down affirmative action, it would be a major step backwards for already disadvantaged Americans most a ected by the decision.

JasonLiisasophomorestudying Finance, Investment, and Banking at UW-Madison. Do you think the SupremeCourtshouldstrikedown a rmative action, or should they upholdthepractice?Letusknowat opinion@dailycardinal.com.

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Budgeting as a college student 101

By Sophia Ross STAFF WRITER

I’m sure we’ve all heard the stereotype of being a “broke college kid” a million times over. I’ll admit, I rolled my eyes quite a few times when adults tried to tell me to make smart money decisions the summer before I entered university.

Me? Needing to make smart money decisions? The girl who, at the time, was working two jobs simultaneously and raking in 50 hour weeks? No, there’s definitely no way I was going to become the typical college student living off of ramen noodles and cheap takeout.

But seven months and many dents to the bank account later, here I am. And if I’m correct, I’m guessing most of us are in a similar position.

With the newfound independence of living on our own also came the tough realization that everything our parents had extra of in the cupboard we now need to buy for ourselves.

All in all, college is expensive. Much more so than I, at least, was anticipating. To combat these unexpected costs, I’ve compiled a few tips to ensure college students can remain in good financial standing

until mid-May.

Limit your meals out

For starters, I’m sure we can all be better about eating out slightly less. Freshmen, utilize those dining halls more often. Brave the long lines and sometimes mediocre food. I promise you’ll survive … and be richer for it.

For any students without a set meal plan, don’t be afraid of the grocery store. Being intentional with your purchases will prove to be very beneficial. Buying meals — or ingredients to prepare a legitimate meal — instead of only stocking up on quick snacks will not only be more versatile throughout the week but keep you full longer, therefore preventing you from spending more on additional food.

Utilize free transportation options

Now, let’s think beyond food. A huge expenditure I’ve experienced has been on transportation. This is where the Associated Students of Madison (ASM) bus passes the university provides come in handy.

Free to students, obtaining a bus pass ensures you at least have the option of a costless trip somewhere. Of course, there will always be a time and place for getting an Uber, especially if you’re in a rush. But there are plenty of times when you could save yourself some cash and simply check the bus schedule.

Take advantage of student discounts

The final tip I have is to utilize that student discount whenever and wherever you can. Countless places ranging from restaurants, to clothing stores, to online sites have deals for students. Even a simple 10% off your purchase for being a registered college student will help significantly long term.

AMC Theatres, Levi’s and Madewell are among several other chains with locations near campus that offer Madison students various discounts — something we all might as well benefit from during our four years here on campus.

By starting off small and making more moneyconscious choices, we can all prevent the textbook definition of a broke college student from becoming a reality.

By Hina Suzuki STAFF WRITER

The Dane County Farmers’ Market, the largest producer-only farmers’ market in the United States, has been a Saturday tradition in Madison since 1972. Shoppers flood the market on the Capitol Square in the spring, summer and fall, savoring fresh, in-season and local produce.

Spring break in the Midwest may not seem fun, but who can complain with sunsets like this!

A survival guide to spring break in the Midwest

By Lauren Ingrassia STAFF WRITER

For some students, spring break includes a sunny getaway with warm winds and salty air. However, the reality for those of us staying in the Midwest is an occasional peak of sunshine through mostly gray clouds and cold winds that pierce our faces with snowflakes. As a fellow Midwesterner who has endured many spring breaks in less-thantropical conditions, here’s a survival guide to spending your spring break in the Midwest.

The cold doesn’t have to make you bitter. Instead, embrace the elements and try a new outdoor activity such as snowshoeing or going on a nature walk. As snow and ice begin to melt, signs of new life and growth will be visible in your time outdoors, and feelings of excitement for the upcoming spring may arise.

Haiden Larson, a University of WisconsinMadison sophomore and Wisconsin native, has spent the last three spring breaks

locally and found that nature walks are a fun way to relax.

“Walking on a nature trail while listening to music is really therapeutic for me, even if it’s not the warmest or prettiest outside,” Larson said. “But hey, we live in Wisconsin, so you can’t expect a super scenic walk outside in the middle of March.”

Another way to stay busy is to get a head start on your spring cleaning, including physical, mental and even digital spaces. An obvious start is the space where you spend the most time. Whether that be your bedroom, living room or kitchen, cleaning and organizing your personal space is the first step in clearing your mind.

“I always feel so much better after my room is clean and organized, and it even energizes me to keep cleaning other spaces,” Larson said. “This is also a great time to try something new and switch up the layout of your room, or try a new organization method.”

There are many meth-

ods to achieving mental clarity, and success may look and feel di erent for everyone. Take this time o from school to prioritize relaxation through an activity like meditation, yoga, reading a book or even just taking a nap.

“Last spring break was when I started taking yoga and pilates classes just to try something new,” Larson said. “I was surprised at how great I felt after, both mentally and physically, and these classes are now one of my favorite hobbies.”

Finally, cleaning out digital spaces can make the return to school easier to navigate. This can be done by deleting unnecessary files o of your computer, organizing class materials into folders or going through email inboxes.

It’s best to think of your Midwestern spring break as a reset, one in which the glow of your newfound relaxation may outshine the bronzed skin and exotic stories many classmates will surely return to campus with.

Many college students struggle with a ording and finding the time to buy local products. Typical grocery stores like Target and online retailers like Amazon are convenient and have expansive product selections. But, they fail to o er the benefits of shopping locally, including knowing where your food comes from, being environmentally sustainable and, most importantly, supporting local farmers.

For students at the University of WisconsinMadison, going to the farmers’ market is a budget-friendly, accessible and fun way to shop locally. But as the Capitol stands in silence during the long, cold winter months, are there ways students can still buy local products? The answer is yes.

1. There are farmers’ markets in the winter!

From January until the weather is warm again in April, about 40 Dane County Farmers’ Market producers gather at the Late Winter Market. The market takes place at Garver Feed

Mill on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. You will find seasonal Wisconsin-grown ingredients such as kale, winter squash and apples, as well as bakery items and, of course, cheeses.

During the holiday season in November and December, the Monona Terrace also hosts the Holiday Market, where you can also find locally produced items.

2. Take a bus and go to a grocery cooperative

All UW-Madison students are part of the Associated Students of Madison (ASM) Bus Pass program, meaning you can catch any Madison Metro bus for free. Co-ops are o campus, but with the bus pass, they are accessible.

A co-op is an independent grocery store owned by community members and shoppers. The owners participate in decisions such as choosing what foods are on the shelves and determining how much the employees are compensated. Since co-ops are rooted in the local communities they serve, you can find more local and sustainable products than you would at a conventional grocery store.

Willy Street Co-op is one of the grocery cooperatives in Madison with three stores. Almost all items at the store are displayed with a brief explanation of where they came from and how they were produced.

3. Follow your local farms

on social media

Stay connected with local farmers on social media. You can learn about the projects they work on during the cold months and gain knowledge about what it’s like to be a farmer.

Here are some accounts you can follow:

@unconventional_acres: Unconventional Acres is a woman-owned farm that sells beef, pork and free range eggs. On their Instagram, they share photos of the animals and their life on the farm.

@vitruvian farms: Vitruvian farms grow organic vegetables and mushrooms that are harvested, washed and delivered within a day. They share photos and videos of their organic sustainable farming practices on their Instagram.

@chrisandlorisbakehouse:

If you have been to the Dane County Farmers’ Market, you probably had Chris and Lori’s Bakehouse’s scones. Make sure to follow them so you won’t miss the first batch of the farmers’ market season!

@danecofm: Follow the Dane County Farmers’ Market’s Instagram to stay up to date with their upcoming markets!

Even though supporting your local farmers may be a little harder during the winter months, there are still many ways to get out there and shop local.

DRAKE WHITE-BERGEY/THE DAILY CARDINAL

How students can support local farmers in the winter